Benefits

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Javan rusa have a direct impact on farming through competition with domestic stocks. The competition for pasture, between the deer and domestic animals use for farming, seems to be a very important issue in Indonesia. Also, Javan rusa eat crops and sometimes spread weeds that are harmful to farming.

Benefits

provided by Animal Diversity Web

Javan rusas shed their antlers between the months of October and February. These are collected and used primarily in Asian medicine. Also, the antlers can be used as jewelry. In Queensland, Australia, 50% of the deer farmed are Javan rusa. While economic by-products such as hides offer some income to rusa farmers in Australia, the major commercial activity from rusa deer farming is deer meat (venison) production. Venison is considered a lean and nutritious red meat.

Morphology

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Male Javan rusa are larger than females. Males usually weigh 152 kg, while females weigh about 74 kg. The males have a lyre-shaped, three-tined antlers, which weigh about 2.5 kg. Males and females have a rough grayish brown coat that is often coarse in appearance. Their ears are rounded and broad. The animals look short and stubby because they have relatively short legs.

Description

Rusa deer are distinguished by their large ears, the light tufts of hair above the eyebrows, and antlers that appear large relative to the body size. The antlers are lyre-shaped and three-tined.[3] Males are bigger than females; head-to-body length varies from 142 to 185 cm (4.66 to 6.07 ft), with a 20 cm (7.9 in) tail.[4] Males weigh 152–160 kg, female about 74 kg. The pelage is grayish-brown and often appears coarse.[3] Unlike most other deer species, newborn fawns do not bear spots.[4]

Distribution and habitat

The Javan rusa natively occurs on the islands of Java, Bali, and Timor in Indonesia. It has been introduced to Irian Jaya, Borneo (Kalimantan), the Lesser Sunda Islands, Maluku, Sulawesi, Pohnpei, Mauritius, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, the Christmas Islands, the Cocos Islands, Nauru, Australia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, New Britain, and New Ireland.[2][5] Rusa deer were introduced by the Dutch to New Guinea during the early 1900s.[6]:375

Its habitat preferences are similar to that of the chital of India: open dry and mixed deciduous forests, parklands, and savannas. Rusa deer have established populations in remote islands, probably brought there by Indonesian fishermen. They adapt well, living as comfortably in the dry Australian bush as they do in their tropical homelands. This trait is shown well in the more frequent encounters on the fringes of Wollongong and Sydney, and in particular in the Royal National Park, indicating steadily growing numbers and strong herds.

Ecology

Rusa deer are active mostly in the early morning and late afternoon. They are rarely seen in the open and are very difficult to approach due to their keen senses and cautious instincts.

The species is very sociable, and individuals are rarely found alone. When alarmed, a rusa stag lets out an extremely loud honk. This is an alarm call and alerts any other deer in the vicinity.

As with other deer species, Javan rusa mainly feed on grass, leaves, and fallen fruit. They do not drink water, deriving all required fluid from their food.[3][4]

Reproduction

The Javan rusa mates around July and August, when stags contest by calling in a loud, shrill bark and duelling with the antlers. The doe gives birth to one or two calves after a gestation period of 8 months, at the start of spring. Calves are weaned at 6–8 months, and sexual maturity is attained at 3–5 years, depending on habitat conditions. Javan rusas live 15–20 years both in the wild and in captivity.[3][4]